6 Love and All Its Forms
by TheNewIdea
Summary: "You don't love someone because they're prefect, you love in spite of the fact that they are not."-Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper. Cliche choice I know, but I find it rather fitting for this story. Enjoy.


Brian sat on the couch in front of the recently installed fireplace, on top which the TV now sat. Lying up against him on his right was Stewie; on his left was his adopted son, a German Sheppard who the family had taken to calling "Little Brian." Brian wasn't one to argue when it came to names and so let it pass. On that note, because of this name, Brian was sometimes referred to as Big Brian, much to his annoyance. But for the sake of his son he would accept it.

Brian looked at the clock, it was 10:30, Peter and Lois would be home in twenty minutes. Meg and Chris were already asleep, both of them having early days ahead of them and deciding to get an early head start in the beauty sleep department.

"I guess this is life" Brian said to himself as he gently patted the heads of the kids, "Not bad Brian, not bad at all."

A knock at the door sent Brian off of the couch; he was surprised to find that it was Carrie, his current girlfriend, a nurse at the local cancer center that Brian volunteered at from time to time.

Carrie was in her teal blue scrubs, she looked like she had just returned from a long shift, her hair, which was blonde and always kept neat and combed, was going in every direction possible as if it were Willy Wonka's elevator. Carrie's eyes, a deep sea blue, had mascara running down from them, why Carrie decided to wear mascara at all in a stressful work environment is a mystery in a self, perhaps she had plans after work.

"Wow" Brian said with a smile and a laugh as he stepped politely to the side allowing Carrie to enter, "You look horrible."

"Thanks" Carrie replied sarcastically, "Because that's what every girl wants to hear after a long day."

Brian laughed, this time it was more sincere.

"You know I didn't mean it that way" he continued, "You're beautiful on every day of the week. But seriously though, you have mascara all over your cheeks and your hair looks like you just raised Frankenstein's Monster."

Carrie nodded as she made her way over to the couch, careful not to disturb the sleeping dog and baby. Brian, giving Carrie proper space, took the armchair across the living room. The glow from the fireplace got a little bit brighter, lighting up the room to almost romantic atmospheres, but neither Brian nor Carrie felt doing anything, they simply wanted to sit and be in each other's company.

"How are the kids?" Brian began, referring to Carrie's patients, all of whom were between the ages of 6 and 18, all of them diagnosed with terminal cancer.

"As good as they can be" Carrie answered, "When you're dying like they are you can only pretend that things are going to get better for so long. To be honest Brian I'm amazed that they made it this far."

Brian nodded, well familiar with the situation. It pained him to think of any more, especially with Stewie and now Little Brian.

"So what are you thinking?" Brian asked, trying to get away from the topic.

"How's Jasper lately?" Carrie replied, completely avoiding his question.

Brian sighed a bit; he hadn't seen his cousin in person in years. The only communication he had with him was on the Internet and the few times with the web cam, but even that wasn't enough. The only thing that Brian knew about Jasper's life was that it was going on. He and Ricardo had decided to adopt, Brian was actually surprised that they didn't do it sooner for Jasper was always talking about children.

"Don't know" Brian said with a sigh, "I can only hope he's doing well. He's the only real family I got left."

Brian looked towards his son and instantly rebuked his statement. Stewie was in the process of wrestling with Little Brian in his sleep, causing the dog to respond with small growls and snarls. It was cute, almost sickeningly cute.

"You're a good father Brian" Carrie replied as she looked on

Brian laughed sarcastically, as if calling him a good father was an insult to fatherhood.

"No I'm not" he answered honestly, "I'm barely holding my own here. Lois and Peter have their hands full with their own kids; they can't be bothered with mine. Besides, after what I did to Dylan I don't think I have the right to call myself a father."

Carrie embraced him and gently kissed Brian's forehead. Brian simply breathed, saying nothing and returning the embrace.

"It doesn't matter what you did before" Carrie exclaimed, "What matters is what you're doing now. You're raising him right and that's the best you can do."

Brian shook his head for several things that could make his situation better; for one thing it would help if he was dating someone of his own species, for Little Brian never had a mother to speak of, at least in the conventional sense. Brian had to buy milk from grocery stores and even had to get Lois to breastfeed once. It was costly and with Brian working two jobs, one at the center and one at the Clam, it was starting to take a toll on his mental health.

Brian rolled his eyes, "I hate that name" he said jokingly, "Little Brian. Don't get me wrong I'm honored that he's named after me but come on really, "Little"? It's ridiculous. He's going to be called that for the rest of his life."

Carrie nodded in partial agreement, "Yes" she answered, "And when they ask why he can say he was named after Big Brian. See, it works."

Brian huffed playfully and stood up; he began to pace nervously as the night dragged on. Peter and Lois should have been home by now. Something was wrong.

"Watch them for me" Brian said as he moved for his keys, "I'm going out. I won't be long. If I'm not back in twenty minutes call the police."

Carrie nodded in understanding but had no idea as to why Brian was going out. It should have been obvious but Carrie found herself asking the question anyway.

"Where are you going?"

Brian shook his head as he disappeared into the kitchen, reappearing with a handgun that he had recently bought, having a personal fear of home invasions after having one too many bad dreams.

"I'm going to look for Peter and Lois" Brian answered, "They were going to Bistro for dinner, they should been back by now-"

Brian was cut off by the sound of a car door shutting. Brian got behind the kitchen wall out of view of the door, ready in case of an attack. He waited five seconds before turning the corner, it was then that he heard the tumblers unlock as the key entered the door and opened it.

Peter and Lois stepped in the house to face a terrified Brian holding his gun as if he were about to shoot them. It took Brian a few seconds to pull himself together before he eased up, lowering the gun and letting the pressure off.

"Where the hell were you?" Brian scolded, "You were supposed to be home thirty minutes ago."

Peter sat down his coat, neglecting the coat rack by the door. Lois simply trudged up the stairs to bed.

"Traffic was a killer Brian" Peter explained, "It's backed up for blocks and there's no way around it."

Brian raised his eyebrows, pressing for more information.

"It was the most ironic car crash that I've ever seen" Peter continued, "An ambulance, a fire truck and a police car all responding to the same thing. One on top of the other, it was like the cars were trying to have some kind of threesome or something."

Brian had no idea as to why Peter was making jokes about something so horrible, no matter how ironic the crash was, it was just Peter's way of dealing with problems. If he was sad about something, he would let you know about it by making fun of it in some way.

Peter moved over to the couch and picked up Stewie. Carrie, at the same time, stood up and made her way towards the door.

"Sleep well Brian" Carrie whispered as she kissed him.

Brian returned the gesture with equal passion and smiled. It was then that he realized that he couldn't love another person more than he loved Carrie. Brian was this way with many people, for he had promised his heart to so many women only for them to leave after a few months. But somehow, this was different, he just wasn't sure how yet.

"Why did you come over here anyway?" Brian asked curiously, "Isn't What's-His-Face going to be worried about you?"

Carrie laughed, "My brother isn't exactly the caring type remember?"

Brian nodded, "Yeah I remember" he said as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, "You could stay if you want to. We don't have to do anything; we can talk just like we're doing now."

Carrie thought about it and silently agreed sitting back on the couch, she turned towards Peter.

"Alright if I stay Mr. Griffin?" Carrie asked for the sake of being nice.

Peter smiled and nodded looking on at Brian and Carrie thinking of what their future would be.

"You know the rules" he stated, "Any time you need a place to stay...or to be alone, you're always welcome."

Brian nodded and gave a knowing smile, "You're thinking about us aren't you?" Brian asked, following up.

Peter nodded in turn. He wasn't going to lie; there was no point in it. "Yeah" Peter said with a reminiscent sigh, "You remind me of me when I was young and in love with Lois. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do for her just to hear her laugh, to see her smile."

Carrie laughed, "So you're saying that Brian and I should get married?"

Peter shrugged and answered her by making his way up the stairs to get a well deserved sleep and to tuck Stewie into bed.

"Not a bad idea you know" Brian suggested, "I mean we do get along."

Carrie rolled her eyes, "Six months isn't exactly enough time to get to know someone Brian. You of all people should know that. Besides, you're not ready for that kind of commitment."

Brian huffed, slightly offended by Carrie's words even though he knew that they carried all the truth in the world.

"I have commitment" Brian defended, "I take care of Stewie and the kid just fine don't I? I make sure they're fed, they're clean, they're happy and when they're sad I make them feel better. I've been nothing but supportive, nothing but caring. I've been to baseball games, dance recitals, concerts, the dumb award shows. I'm doing everything that I know how to do, I'm nothing but committed."

Carrie laughed and shook her head, "Saying that you're committed only means that you're not. Doing all of those things only means that you're spoiling them and the fact that you haven't touched me yet means you're selfish. So tell me again, who's the committed one?"

Brian gave a deep sigh; it took everything he had not to take her up on the offer, but he maintained his decency, only allowing himself the simple graces that a kiss provides. When he broke away, Brian smiled and gently touched Carrie's cheek.

"When we're ready" Brian declared, "I want you to give me the straightest you've ever given. No cheap shots, no games. Just yes or no, I'll accept either answer as long as it's honest."

Carrie said nothing and embraced Brian as tight as she could. She simply allowed herself to breathe, wishing for a moment that she had his nose so that she could take in all of Brian's scent and love him for it. Brian did what any rational person would do in this situation, absolutely nothing.

Little Brian opened his eyes slowly, upon seeing the one he called father he raised his head happily and gave a small bark, letting Brian know of his presence.

"Hey buddy" Brian said as he broke away from Carrie and turned around, "What are you doing up?"

"I had the dream again" Little Brian replied softly, "The one about The Man."

Brian sighed, for he knew about "The Man" that Little Brian spoke of. He knew because he once had the same dreams. Unfortunately, as is the case with many rescues, Little Brian came from an abusive household. Unwanted and unloved, he was beaten constantly and rarely, sometimes never, given food. The Man was Little Brian's manifestation of all of his fears, including abandonment, disappointment, stoves and human males in general. For this reason Little Brian made sure to stay clear of Peter at all times, for he didn't want to take any chances despite Peter's apparent affection towards him.

"Tell me a story?" Little Brian continued hopefully, his eyes wet, nose cold and body shaking out of fear.

Brian rolled his eyes, it was going against every rulebook in the history of parenting to comply, but when it was The Man, Brian made an important exception. As Little Brian nestled himself between Brian's arm and chest, Brian began searching through his library of various stories that he had memorized, stories that he told Stewie on nights similar to these.

"Once there was a dog" Brian began, "His name was Sparky and he loved to run. He would go out into the field and chase the rabbits through the dandelions; he would never catch them though, for he considered the rabbits to be his friends."

"What did the rabbits think of him?" Little Brian asked, doing what kids do when adults tell a story, interrupting at every break to ask a simple question.

Brian laughed kindheartedly at this, for in this instance Little Brian was an exact replica of Stewie.

"The rabbits didn't mind believe it or not" Brian continued, "They saw it as play, just like Sparky did. Now, do you have any more questions?"

Little Brian shook his head, allowing Brian to continue.

"Sparky would roll, jump and play up and down the hills, he would sniff the air around him and smile, for it was clean and crisp, like drinking a cold glass of water on a hot summer day. When he was tired he would stretch himself out on his favorite rock by a small stream, on which he would dream."

Once again, Little Brian, displaying the curiosity of children, came in right on cue.

"What'd he dream about?" he asked, his eyes never losing the gleam of wonder and innocence that comes with youth. In time, Brian knew, this would diminish and be replaced by the reality of the world in which Little Brian lived in, one of uncertainty, confusion and complete and total chaos.

"He dreamed that one day he would find someone who loved him just as much as he did" Brian answered, "Now, please, go back to sleep, we've got a busy day ahead of us."

Little Brian obediently wriggled out of Brian's arms and curled himself up in a ball. Carrie watched as Brian forgot about her, too concerned with his son to pay her any mind. To her that was okay, for she knew that Brian was living on borrowed time and so could only devote so much attention to any one thing.

"Good night Brian" Carrie exclaimed as she stood up and made her way towards the door, "See you tomorrow."

Brian nodded as she walked out the door, promising himself to deal with Carrie's brother at the earliest opportunity. As soon as he heard Carrie's car leave the driveway, Brian pulled out his computer and turned on his web cam.

"It is 11:15 pm here in Quahog" Brian began as he checked his watch, "I am extremely tired and after the day I've had, it's understandable. Today just goes to show that the Griffins are not good with names, apparently all they can think of is variations of my own name, which is both annoying and touching at the same. It tells me that no matter what, they're always thinking of me. I'm doing my best to be the example that he needs me to be, but I know that I'm not exactly the best person to be raising much of anything. I'm too impulsive, I'm not patient enough. Socially I am considered a minority, my beliefs are shunned upon and my outlook is generally negative. Yet somehow, I have been given the moniker of father to a small puppy that is everything that I am not."

Brian paused for a breath and continued.

"It amazes me how something so small can have a heart so big. If such things like anatomy were taken literally, he wouldn't have a chest; it would be a hole, burst open where his heart should be. I know I'm being preachy and I'm sorry about that, but there are not enough words to do to anything justice anymore. I have come to look at the world through a different lens, a lens that I don't want to take off."

Brian stopped recording and turned off his computer, he would find time to post it later. When this was done, Brian curled himself up in a tight a ball as he could make, encircling his son in the process. He smiled as he thought about the story and realized that Sparky's dream had come true again, as it did every day he spent with those he loved, thankful that he was still in the world in which they lived in.


End file.
